1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a spectrally diverse spectrometer and associated methods. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a spectrally diverse spectrometer having an array of wavelength differentiating elements which are not designed for a specific wavelength.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional spectrometers typically use gratings or thin film filters to discriminate between wavelengths. Gratings are expensive and generally throw away a lot of light due to the modal filtering performed by the gratings. Thin film filters need to be provided in an array for each spectrometer and require multiple coating passes, also increasing cost.
Further, both of these solutions are designed to provide a particular band pass, e.g., a notch filter which only allows a very narrow wavelength range through. An example of such a filter spectrum is shown in FIG. 1. This is not a very efficient use of the light in these systems.
Much of the development in spectrometers has been directed to providing higher resolution systems, which, while increasing accuracy, serves to exacerbate the waste of light. Further, these systems tend to be very sensitive to incident angle. Finally, as wavelength resolution increases, the sensitivity to noise also increases. For many uses, this is acceptable. However, there are many situations using a spectrometer that cannot afford throwing away light and need to be angularly robust.